How India reacted to liquor shops reopening across the country

Social distancing went for a toss as some burst crackers and others pitched a tent to queue up before daybreak

An elderly woman buys liquor in Siliguri after the government allowed liquor shops to reopen from 4 May. Photo: DIPTENDU DUTTA / Contributor

Lockdown 3.0 came with much fewer restrictions across India, but there’s one that really caught people’s attention: the reopening of liquor shops. Some were so ecstatic that they offered coconuts, garlanded customers and even burst crackers in celebration.

All alcohol stores across the country had been shut since 24 March, since the lockdown was first announced to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Now, as part of steps to ease the restrictions, liquor shops have opened but with a few conditions—only standalone stores can open, not those in markets or malls, and the shops will have to ensure social distancing norms are being followed.

But that’s been far from reality. In several cities, large crowds gathered outside alcohol stores, queued up while flouting social distancing rules entirely. In some places, people were in serpentine lines since the early hours of the morning, even before the shops opened.

Such was the chaos in Delhi that many shops had to be shut down due to overcrowding and lack of appropriate social distancing merely hours after they reopened. The police also resorted to baton-charging people at Kashmere Gate. Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Chhattisgarh and Chandigarh, among other places, had similar scenes.

Chhattisgarh: Social distancing norms being flouted as people in large numbers queue outside a liquor shop in Rajnandgaon. The state govt has allowed liquor shops to open in the state from today except for the containment zones. #CoronavirusLockdownpic.twitter.com/GfTzQP86Ip

This video is from Tirupati… If this continues then all the care and hard work which this country has undergone in the last few days will be wasted… Revenue is imp but not at cost of life's…#LiquorShopspic.twitter.com/J5UEm9Onsm